Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 61
मेरुः प्रासादराजा च देवानामालयो हि सः । आदौ पञ्चाण्डको ज्ञेयः केसरीनामतः स्थितः
meruḥ prāsādarājā ca devānāmālayo hi saḥ | ādau pañcāṇḍako jñeyaḥ kesarīnāmataḥ sthitaḥ
‘میرو’ محلات کا راجا ہے؛ بے شک وہ دیوتاؤں کا آلیہ ہے۔ ابتدا میں ‘پنجانڈک’ نامی مندر کو جاننا چاہیے جو ‘کیسری’ کے نام سے قائم کیا گیا۔
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced)
Tirtha: Meru-prāsāda; Pañcāṇḍaka (Kesarī) shrine within Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: temple
Scene: A towering ‘Meru’ prāsāda at the center like a golden mountain, surrounded by smaller shrines; in the foreground a marked ‘first’ shrine named Pañcāṇḍaka, associated with the epithet Kesarī, suggesting lion-like grandeur or a patron/marker.
FAQs
The central shrine is treated as a divine residence—approaching it is akin to entering the gods’ own dwelling, with ordered subsidiary sanctuaries.
The Meru prāsāda at Someśvara in Prabhāsa-kṣetra, described as the foremost palace-temple.
No explicit rite; the verse provides hierarchical orientation (which shrine is central and which is first to be noted).